A physical link of a certain protocol standard is typically characterized by a certain capability of transmitting payload. For example, a physical link might be characterized by a certain bandwidth, or, in case of xDSL links, by a certain rate/reach capability. It is often desirable to increase the rate of data transmission by bonding multiple physical links. The concept of bonding allows to utilize the combined capabilities of several physical links. Therefore, the concept of bonding has been applied for a variety of different transmission protocols. For example, ATM bonding standards ITU-T SG15/Q4 and ANSI T1E1.4 are currently being developed. Bonding is also known in the field of Ethernet data transmission. For example, the standard IEEE 802.3ah relates to Ethernet bonding.
Whenever data packets are transmitted via a variety of different physical links, the data packet's sequential order will most likely get lost. Due to differential delays between the various links, a reordering of the received data packets has to be performed.
It is therefore an object of the invention to simplify the reception of data via a multitude of bonded links.